Look, I'm not a fan of any company that outsources parts of their HR and I'm sure a company like WestJet has enough candidates to vet these days that they could dedicate an intern or something nearly full time to the task of calling references. Instead they've contracted it out, and like most times this happens (I'm looking at you, Porter) the contractor either doesn't know or doesn't care about what they're doing.

Case in point: a couple calls I've had from Encore's reference folks have had me give clear, positive answers about the candidate only to have them ask me why I felt so negatively. I'm talking simple answers here like "Yes," just to get, "And why is it that you wouldn't hire them again?" I have no idea what they're doing on the other end, for all I know they're simultaneously offering text chat support for the cable company or something, but I've been startled by them getting my answers very, very wrong more than once. Makes me wonder what's being written that I'm not having read back for clarification. Maybe I'm overreacting but there are peoples' livelihoods at stake.

I'm no stranger to hearing from pilots' lawyers, such is my place in life, but I wonder if the folks at WJE are getting angry legal letters too. If there are any Encore managers reading this, well now you're aware of what's going on.

Perhaps a quick email or phone call to the WestJet HR department might be more beneficial than an AvCanada rant?

Sometimes public shaming works better to correct the actions of a multi-billion dollar company that should and could do better. Maybe Dave P has an answer... though he has been less than honest in the past.

Sounds like the OP is genuinely concerned about the future(s) of a couple of pilots he has given references for. And if that is the case, then do the right thing, take a couple of minutes, and send a quick email to Westjet and let them know your experience.

Public venting or ranting on an Internet forum might feel good for a few minutes, but doesn’t really go a long way to clear up a problem.

Perhaps it might end up in the right person’s inbox eventually, but there are definitely more professional and expeditious ways of solving a problem than an AvCanada rant.

This is kind of more Encore's problem than anyone's. Let's be honest, the folks who missed out because a reference was misquoted instead just went to Jazz, Porter, Sky Regional, Georgian, Transat, Sunwing, or somewhere else within a matter of weeks anyways.

We still use the 3rd party from time to time.
In particular when we are jammed with hiring. Don’t forget up until recently, the 2 pilot recruiters are filling spots for all three companies. WestJet, Encore and Swoop. All while doing interviews, reviewing video interviews, reviewing cognitive results, reviewing back checks for security and doing interview invites.

Swoop only in the last couple weeks got their own recruiter and a budget was approved to bring on a coordinator for WestJet and Encore.

With that, not all references are and were, done with the 3rd party. With the new coordinator position coming into play - more will be done by them.

Regardless, it’s not the best - we know that (and knew that) despite what was said above, but we are working to improve that area.

All in all, the recruiters do a great job as do our pilot peers that sit in on the interviews.

Seven oh - you are always welcome to reach out to me directly if you wish. Pm me for contact information.

While the administrators and moderators of this
forum will attempt to remove or edit any generally objectionable material as
quickly as possible, it is impossible to review every message. If you feel a
topic or post is inappropriate email us at
avcanada@gmail.com . By reading these forums you acknowledge that
all posts made to these forums express the views and opinions of the author and
not the administrators, moderators or webmaster (except for posts by these
people) and hence will not be held liable. This website is not responsible or liable in any way for any false or misleading messages or job ads placed at our site.

Use AvCanada's information at your own risk!

We reserve the right to remove any messages that we deem unacceptable.
When you post a message, your IP is logged and may be provided to concerned parties where unethical or illegal
behavior is apparent.
All rights reserved.